Protective arrangement



May 27, 1930. H. s. PETCH ET AL PROTECTIVE ARRANGEMENT Filed June 21, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet Inventors: Herbert S. Petch, Edward Lfwheatcroft, y Their Attorneg.-

May 27, 1930. H. s. PETCH ET AL 1,760,521

PROTECTIVE ARRANGEMENT Filed June 21, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Inventor's: Herbert SFetch, Edward Lfiwheatcroft.

The'u" Attorney.

May 27, 1930. H. s. PETCH ET AL PROTECTIVE ARRANGEMENT 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed June 21, 1926 Fig.6.

Q c 9 ..%&Je .5 e n r .h r mfiW. m 1W m eeL F m m a T m w H uv E b May 27, 1930,

H. S. PETCH ET AL PROTECTIVE ARRANGEMENT Filed June 21, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 v v utv v v v &

Inventors Herbert SPetch Edward L .EWheatcroft,

Th e'u" Attorney.

Patented May 27, .1930

UNITED STATES PATENT orrlcn HERBERT STAHLEY FETCH, OF LONDON, AND EDWARD I. E. wHEATCBOFT, OF GAIL, '10 GENERAL ELECTRIC OOMPANY, A. CORPORATION BRIDGE, ENGLAND, ASSIGNORS OF NEW YORK I?EO'JPIIllG'J.IVE ARRANGEMENT Application. filed 11111621, 1926, Serial No. 117,630, and in Great Britain. June 26, 1925.

Our invention relates to improvements in protective arrangements for A. G. or D. C. electric circuits for instance, feeders, interconnectors or the like, .or electric apparatus,

a whereby a faulty portion or section of an electric circuit can be disconnected selectively without interrupting continuity of service on the remainder of the circuit. Our invention comprises the use of an imre pedance or resistance which is adapted to produce a potential drop which varies directly with that in the protected section. In the protection of an A. C. section the impedance may be of the type commonly used in connec- 15 tion with voltage regulating systems and preferably consists of a resistanceand an inductance which are respectively proportioned to those of the protected section. capacitance corresponding to the capacity lof the protected section may be added, if necessary. The impedance is preferably energized by being connected to the secondary winding of a current transformer the primary winding of which is excited responsively to the current in the protected section, Other methods of connecting the impedance, so that it will produce the required voltage dro are,.however, known. In the case of l). circuits the impedance is a resistance, and the necessary resistance may he supplied by a shunt'in the main circuit.

' "We propose that operation shall be effected (i. e. that the protected section shall be tripped or that a signal shall be given) in response to a fault on the protected section through the interaction of two voltages, when one of them reverses, which are obtained without the use of pilot wires by means of the impedance or resistance which is adapted to produce a potential drop equivalent to that v in the protected section.

A further feature of our invention consists in an arrangement for single phase A. C. or D. C. protection comprising an im edance or resistance, adapted to carry a Xed percentage of the current andof such value as to produce a potential drop which varies directly with thatin the protected section in normal conditions, and a protective relay of the watt- 5 (meter pattern or the equivalent the operation of which depends upon the interaction of a voltage proportional to that at the end where the relay is arranged (hereinafter referred to as the near end) with a voltage equal to the apparent voltage at the far end, as obtained from the impedance or resistance, that is, the vectorial diiference between the voltage at the near end and the potential dropin the impedance or resistance. This apparent voltage is proportional to the voltage at the far end when there is no fault on the pro tected section. In fault conditions it is proportional to the voltage which would obtain at the far end if there were no fault in the section although it were called upon to carry the fault current.

In A. C. protection a potential transformer A is preferably arranged at one end of the'protected section and its secondary winding is connected in series with the impedance which is energized from the secondary winding of a current transformer the primary of which is connected to the section to be protected.

However the impedance or resistance be energized, by suitable connections the requisite voltages may be taken from its two ends to the two windings of a protective relay or the equivalent which can be arranged to operate a tripping circuit or the equivalent for the protected section only when one of the til) Ill

voltages reverses, which can only occur with a fault in the section.

In applying our invention to the protection .7

of a three-phase circuit or apparatuadthe general principles outlined above will app1y,' but the voltages which interact in the relay should be proportional to the apparent voltages at the far end of the protected section, as obtained from the impedance.

Another feature of our invention consists in an arrangement for protecting a threephase electric circuit or apparatus which comprises an impedance per phase adapted to carry a fixed percentage of the current of the phase and of such a value as to produce a potential drop which varies directly with that in the phase of the protected section, and

a protective relay or the equivalent per phase on t the operation of which depends up e interaction of a voltage proportional to the apparent voltage at the far end between the phase and earth wit-h a voltage proportional to the apparent voltage between the other two phases at the far end.

Our invention will be better understood from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and its scope will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figs. 1 and 1 each represent a single circuit and the corresponding voltage gradient thereoffor (lilferent assumed faults; Fig. 2 and 2 represent the voltage gradients in the impedauces for a three-phase circuit in the case of an interphase fault, that is, between two phase conductors, and an earth-fault, that is between one phase conductor and earth, respectively; Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an arrangement for protecting a single A. 0. line according to our invention; Figs. 4 and 5 are diagrams showing alternative connections and arrangements for protecting a three-phase circuit according to our invention; Fig. 6 shows diagrammatically another three-phase circuit protective arrangement with a time limit feature embodying our invention; Fig. 7 shows diagrammatically a modificationof the embodiment of our invention shown in Fig. 6; Fig. 8 shows diagrammatically the application of our invention to D. C. protection.

In Figs. 1 and 1", the protected section of the circuit 11 is represented by the near and far ends, 12 and 13, respectively, and 14 indicates the position of an assumed fault. The voltage gradient is indicated by the lines 15.

In Fig. 2, the voltages at the near end 12 are symmetrical, at the fault 14 the interphase voltage between the two faulty phase conductors is zero, and at the far end 13 the apparent voltage V between the two faulty phase conductors is of opposite sign to the voltage V at the near end. In Fi 2 the actual and apparent phase con uctor to earth voltages for the faulty phase V and V, at the near and far ends 12 and 13, respectively, are of opposite sign.

Referring now to Fig. 3, there is shown a potential transformer 16 connected to the circuit 11 to be protected and having its primary winding 17 earthed, as at 18. The impedance 19 is of a value equal or proportional to that of the protected section, and is here shown as comprising only inductance and resistance. The impedance 19 is arranged to be energized proportionally to the protected circuit, asby means of a current transformer whose secondary winding 22 is connected across the impedance 19. The secondary winding 23 of the potential transformer 16 is connected at one end to the impedance 19. Any suitable type of protective relay 24 herein illustrated diagrammatically as a wattmeter type of induction relay having cooperating windings 25 and 26, may be used, operation being effected when the current in either winding reverses. The winding 26 is here connected across points 27 and 28 and the winding 25 across points 27 and 29. The winding 26 is, therefore, energized in accordance with the voltage at the near end 12. The winding 25 is energized in accordance with the apparent voltage at the other or far end 13 of the section, that is, to the vectorial difference between the voltage at the,

near end and the potential drop in the impedance 19. If there is no fault on the circuit 11 this apparent voltage is proportional to the volt-age at the far end. In the case of a fault on the protected section, it represents the voltage which would obtainiat the far end if the section itself were faultless but carrying the fault current. The dash and dot lines 31 in the Figs. 1 and 1 show the potential drop in the impedance 19 when there is a fault in the protected section and beyond it respectively. If V, is the voltage at the near end, V, that at the far end, and V the drop in the im edance it will readily be understood that, w en thefault is in the protected section, as in Fig. 1, the apparent voltage is V -V,, that V is less than V and that, therefore V,,V, equals -V, and is of opposite sign to V... When the fault is outside the protected section, as in Fig. 1 the apparent voltage, V,,V,, is equal to V,, and isof the same sign as V,,. Consequently so long as the protected section 12, 13 is healthy, the windings 25 and 26 will be energized without effecting operation of the relay 24, but so soon as the section becomes faulty, the current in one of the windings 25, 26 is reversed with respect to that in the other and the relay operates to effect the opening of the circuit breaker 45.

In the arrangement shown in Fig. 4 for the protection of a three-phase electric circuit 11 at the near end 12 of the protected section,

there is arranged a potential transformer 16 having its primary windings 17' connected in star to the voltages of the phases, respectively, and earthed as at 18, impedances 19 proportional, respectively, to those of the phases and current transformers having their primary windings energized in accordance with the currents in the respective phase conductors. One set of ends 21 of the secondary windings 22 of the current transformers is end connected to one set of ends of the impedances 19 by the conductor 32 and the other sets of ends of the star connected secondary windings 22 and the impedances 19 are directly connected as shown. One set of ends of the secondary windings 23 of the potential transformer 16is individually connected to the second set of ends of the impedances 19. Protective relays 24 or the equivalent (of which only one is here shown for simplicity), at therate of one per phase and each having two cooperating windings 25 and26, are connected so that one of the windings 25 joins the other end of one ofthe potential transformer secondary windings 23 to the end connection 32' ,of the current -transformer secondary windings 22, while the other winding 26'is connected between the other ends of taps of the two other secondary windings 23' of the potential transformer 16. This method of connection has the advantage that an additional impedance 33 ma be connected between the first set of ends 0 the impedances 19 and the and connection 32 of the current transformer secondaries 22.. By. this means the reduction of the apparent voltage occasioned by an earth fault may be made greater than the corresponding reduction due to a phase fault of similar magnitude. The end connection 32 of the current transformer secondaries 22 is preferably earthed as at 3 1.

The arrangement for effecting the protection of a three-phase electric circuit 11 shown in Fig. 5 comprises'a potential transformer 16' at the near end 12 having its primary windings 17 star-connected, respectively to the phase voltages and earthed as at 18, current transformers having secondary windings 22 and their primary windings energized in accordance with the currents in the phases, respectively, impedances 19 proportional to those of the phases, and wattmeter relays 24 having two windings 25 and 26,-just as in Fig. 1.

The secondary windings 22 of the current transformers are, however, connected respectively across the impedances 19 and one set of ends 20 of the secondary windings 23 of the potential transformer 16 is end-connected by the line 35 and the other set is connected individually to one set of ends 190 of the impedances 19, while one of the windings 25 of each protective relay 24 (only one is shown) ing 26 in accordance with is connected between the other end of one of the impedances and the end connection 35 'of the potential transformer secondarywindings and the. other winding 26 is connected between .the other ends of the two other impedances 19.

In both of these arrangements, one winding 25 of each relay is energized in accordance with the apparent voltage between a phase and earth at the far end and the other windthe apparent voltage at the far end between the two remaining phases. When there is no fault, the voltages are approximately 90 out-of-phase but, in cases of fault, 27 0 out-of-phase, as will easily be seen from Figs. 2 and 2 In order to provide desirable tripping characteristics in all circumstances it may be necessary to "excite the interphase winding 26 of each protective relay bfy tappings from the secondary windings 23 o the potential transformer 16 as shown in Fig. 4. These tapfault, except that of a three-phase short-cir- I cuit in which all the phases are involved, as might occur in the protection of an underground three-phase cable. To offer protection in this case, also, a fourth relay may be used, the same being connected as described above in Fig. 3 in connection with single phase protection. This relay may be an extremely sensitive one to ensure operation in cases of severe interphase short-circuit when the voltages are very low. This fourth relay is not necessary if one of the three relays, described in connection with Figs. 4 and 5, has its windings connected, respectively, to

receive the apparent voltage to earth at the far end and the interphase voltage at the near end, the other two relays being connected as before described. V Arrangements according to our invention can obviously be used in the protection of other polyphase circuits or apparatus.

Furthermore, the arrangements described may be provided at both ends of a section .to

be protected in order to ensure complete isowhich case the voltage at the far end is zero orvery small) we prefer to over-compound the impedance, that is to say, to arrange it so i that it produces a potential drop which appears to be slightly greater than that in the protected section with respect to its efiect on the voltages applied to the protective relay.

Such an arrangement ensures operation in the case when a fault occurs exactly at the far end, as one of the two interacting aparent volta es is now reversedmstead of 3 being zero, but on the other hand, if the fault should happen just beyond the far end of the protected section, operation would in this case also be effected. To prevent this unwanted operation, we propose to combine with each protective relay a means of applying bias, or a time limit device, whereby in the case assumed, operation would be delayed in the section which had not actually sustained the fault until operation had beenelfected in the next section beyond the far end, where one of the voltages would be heavily reversed. The time limit, which may be inversel dependent upon the voltage, may be intro need in any well known way, as by making the protective relays in the form of induction disc suitable manner as by the use of one or more biasing transformers of the kind disclosed in Letters Patent of the Unlted States,

1,468,441, issued September 18', 1923, and- 1,560,934, issued November 10, 1925, to Alan S. Fitzgerald and assigned to the same assignee as this invention.

A preferred arrangement for protecting a three-phase circuit against all possible kinds of faults is indicated diagrammatically in Fig. 6. The impedanccs 19 are over-compounded, that is to say, they are arranged to produce potential drops equal, say, to 130% of the drops in their respective phase conductors. Tappings are taken from the points 37 representing 70% of the impedances to the relays 24, which are instantaneous relays. Other tappings are taken from 38 at the ends of the impedances to a second set of relays 24, which are substantially similar to the relays 24 except that they operate with a definite time limit of, say, half a second.

One of the windings 26 of one of the relays of each set is shown as being energized by the interphase voltage at the near end instead of by the apparent inter-phase voltage at the far end. These windings are des-' ignated bythe reference numeral It is believed that the operation of tlllS arrangement will be apparent from what has been stated above, instantaneous protection being afforded by the relays 24 for faults 1n the first of the section, while, in the case of faults on the remainder of the section, de-

layed protection will be offered by the relays 24, each of the relays 24, 24' being arranged to control for example the trip circuit of suitable circuit controlling means such as a circuit breaker 45 at the near end 12 of the section. If the fault is just beyond the far end,

the relays 24 will naturally not operate. The relays 24' would operate, but before this is effected the. relays 24 of the next section will have operated.

- Fig. 7 illustrates a modification of the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 6, using only one set of relays 24, but the connection of their windings to the tapping points 37 or 38 is controlled by suitable time limit relays 39, which operate in response to fault conditions such as excess current after a predetermined interval to shift the connections of the windings 25 and 26 from one set of tapping points to the other. The relays 39 maybe arranged to control an auxiliary relay 40 which under normal conditions is in the position shown and connects the windings 25 and 26 of the relays 24 to the tapping points 37. If a fault occurs in the first 60% of the feeder section operation of the relays 24 will occur substantially instantaneously. If, however, the fault occurs on the remaining portion of the feeder section after the predetermined interval of the time limit relays 39 the relay 40 will be energized, thereby switching over the windings 25 and 26 of the relays 24 to the tappings 38 and operation of the relays 24 will then be effected immediately. If the fault should be only ust beyond the feeder, before the time limit relays 39 can operate to connect the windings of relays 24 to the tapping points 38, the protective devices of the next following section will have operated instantaneously, thus cutting out the faulty section before the healthy sections have been cut out.

In the arrangement illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 8 for protecting a D. C. circuit, the impedance takes the form of a shunt 19 connected in the main circuit 11 and the. relay 24" is a polarized relay having polarizing windings 41 connected in series across points 27 and 28 so as to be energized by the voltage of the circuit at the near'end 12. In addition, it has a second coil comprising two operating windings 42 and 43 which are energized responsively to the voltage drop across the impedance 19 and to the voltage of the circuit 11', respectively. In normal conditions the current in the winding 43 is greater than that in the winding 42. In fault conditions, however, the current in the winding 42 becomes greater than that in the winding 43 and consequently the combined effect of the-coils 42 and 43 is reversed with respect to the effect of the polarizing coils 41 in fault conditions, and the relay operates.

While we have shown and described several embodiments of our invention, we do not desire to be limited to the exact arrangements shown and described but seek to cover in the appended claims all those modifications that fall within the true spirit and scope of our invention.

What we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. A protective arrangement for an electric circuit including an impedance connected and arranged to be energized in accordance with the current of the circuit and proportioned to produce a potential drop which varies in accordance with the potential drop in a section of the circuit, anda relay having a winding connected to be energized in accordance with the difference between the potential drop across the impedance and a potential of the circuit and a cooperating winding connected to be energized in accordance with a potential of the circuit.

2. A protective arrangement for an electric circuit including a relay having a winding connected to be energized in accordance with the difference between a potential of the circuit and a potential drop dependent on the current in the circuit and proportional to the impedance of a portion of the circuit, and a cooperating winding connected to be a potential of at the other end of the section between a phase conductor and ground and a cooperating :Wlndlllg' connected and arranged to be energized in accordance with the apparent potential at the other end between the remaining phase conductors.

4. A protective arrangement for a section of a three phase electric circuit including a plurality of impedances at one end of the section, one for each phase, connected and arranged to be energized in accordance with the currents in the respective phase conductors and proportioned to produce a potential drop which varies in accordance with the potential drop in a section of the circuit, and a relay at said endincluding two cooperating windings, said windings and impedances being so connected and arranged that opera tion of the relay is dependent on the apparent potential at the other end of the section between a phase conductor and earth and the apparent potential at the other end between the remaining phase conductors.

5. A protective arrangement for a three phase electric circuit including a potential transformer having its primary windings star-connected to the phase conductors of the circuit and earthed, impedances respectively proportional to the impedances of the phase conductors, current transformers connected to be energized respectively in accordance with the currents in the phase conductors, said impedances being connected respectively across the secondary windings of the current transformers and the secondary windings of the potential transformer being end-connected and connected individually to one set of ends of the impedances, and a protective relay having a winding connected. between the other end of one of the impedances and the end connection of the potential trans- "i'ormer secondary windings and a cooperatlng winding connected between the other ends of the two other impedances.

6. A protective arrangement for a three phase electric circuit including a potential transformer having its primary windings star-connectedto the phase conductors of the circuit and earthed, impedances respective ly proportional to the impedances of the phase conductors, current transformers connected to'be energized respectively in ac.- cordance with the currents in the phase condnctors, said impedancestbeing connected respectively across the secondary windings of the current transformers and the secondary windings of the potential transformer being end-connected and connected individually to one set of ends of the impedances, and a protective rela having a winding connected etween the ot er end of one of the impedances and the end-connection of the potential transformer secondary windings and a cooperating winding connected to be energized in accordance with the potential at the relay location between two of the phase conductors.

7 A protective arrangement for a section of an electric circuit including a relay having a plurality of windings, impedance means the resistance and reactance of which are proportional to the resistance and reactance of the section of the circuit to be protected, means for supplying to said impedance means a current propdrtional to the current in a conductor of said section, means for energizing a winding of the relay in accordance with a potential of said circuit at one end of the section, and connectionsfor energizing another winding of the relay in accordance with the difference between said potential and the potential drop .in the ime pedance means. 8. A protective arrangement for a sectionalized electric circuit including a relay having a plurality of windings, means for energizing one winding of the -relay in accordance with a potential of'the circuit at the near end of one section, impedance means the resistance and reactance of which bear a definite ratio to the resistance and reactance of'said circuit section, means for supplying to the impedance means a current proportional tothe current of said circuit, connections for ,energizing another relay in ac cordance with the diii'erence between the potential at the near end of said section and the potential drop in a portion of said impedance means and a relay having a winding ener gized in accordance with the potential at the near end of the section and a winding energized accordance with the 'dilference between the potential at the near end and the potential drop in a larger portion of the impedance means. 7

9. A protective arrangement for a section its of a three phase electric circuit including a relay having two cooperating windings and said windings in accordance with the apparent voltage beyond the far end of the section between a phase conductor and earth and the other of said windings in accordance with the apparent voltage beyond the far, end of the section between the other two phase conductors.

-10.'A protective arran ement for a three phase electric circuit inc uding a potential transformer connected to be energized from the circuit, impedances respectively proportional to the impedances of the phase conductors of a section of the circuit connected to be energized respectively in accordance with the currents in the phase conductors, the secondaries of the potential transformer being end-connected and connected individually to one set of ends of the impedances, a time limit relay having a winding connected between the other end of one of the impendances v and the end connection of the potential transformer secondaries and a cooperating winding connected between the other ends of the two other impedances, and a substantially instantaneous relay having a winding connected between an intermediate point of one of the impedances and the end connection of the potential transformer secondaries and a cooperating winding connected between intermediate points of the two other impedances.

11. A protective arrangement for an electric circuit includin im edance means connected and arrange to e energized in accordance with the current of the circuit and proportioned to produce a potential drop which Varies in accordance with the potential drop in a section of the circuit and elec-- troresponslve means havlng cooperatingwmdmgs connected and arranged to produce an effect dependent on the product of a potential of the circuit and the difference between said circuit potential and the potential across said impedance means.

In witness whereof, I, one of the abovenamed joint inventors, have hereunto set my hand this 28th day of May, 1926.

HERBERT STANLEY PETCH.

In witness whereof, I, one of the abovenamed joint inventors, have hereunto set my hand this 20th day of May, 1926.

EDWARD L. E. WHEATCROFT.- 

